Bay of Islands was our first stop on our roadtrip, and the only place on the trip we didn't really get to do what we were planning to do. A popular tourist place for swimming, kayaking, snorkeling, etc. in the summer, Bay of Islands was a rainy ghost town in the winter. However, we ended up doing some really cool stuff anyways, and the experience also prompted us to actually plan things to do in each location of our trip rather than just show up hoping to find something to do.
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| A bridge from our first hike of the trip, in the Waitangi Treaty Grounds in Paihia. This was one of the rainiest hikes, but still fun. |
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| Haruru Falls, the destination of the aformentioned hike. |
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| Standing cliffside by the waterfall. New Zealand generally doesn't have fences or warning signs around its attractions :) |
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| Having fun with the panorama feature on my phone. |
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| Rainbow Falls, the AMAZING destination of the next day's hike in Kerikeri. |
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| The rainbow across from the falls and for which the falls are named. |
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| Trying to climb over wet, slippery rocks and through the mist to get to a cave behind the falls. Alexandra and Maria ended up going all the way, while Robin and I decided it was too slippery and turned back at about this point. |
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| The first day of the trip we were lucky enough to see the sun!!! |
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| Waterfall selfie! Featuring soaking wet hair due to climbing around near the base of the waterfall. |
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| A bit north, we passed through the Puketi Forest, home to Kauri trees, which are the oldest and largest trees in New Zealand. |
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| A panorama of our lunch spot in the forest. |
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| Driving farther north, we took an hour or so long detour on this drive, which a local told us was "a must". |